Portfolio: Interactive Books

Sed de Saber (Thirst for Knowledge)

A Series of Six Interactive Books

Curriculum Development Team Member, Lead Interaction Designer: Ellen Brodsky

The Challenge

Develop a series of six interactive books to help low-literacy Hispanic food service workers improve their English competency. The goal of the series was to give people enough of a boost to launch them on their way to career advancement as a result of their improved English skills.

The Result

Hispanic food service workers love this series! Based on real-life tasks the users will be likely to face, the content is immediately practical. The built-in microphone offers users a chance to record themselves and compare their pronunciation with that of native speakers. The platform is portable and can be used with headphones, so no one can hear the user's mistakes. And the "backwards" learning technique worked beautifully to build learner confidence with longer phrases.

A large alpha test of Book 1 showed significant improvements after two weeks of use with over 200 users. The series won the Best Technology Innovation Award in 2004 (California Restaurant Association).